The Ithaca College women’s lacrosse team rejoiced on Senior Day as it defeated the Skidmore College Thoroughbreds 19-11 April 26. The game marked the end of the regular season, with the Bombers holding a 10-6 overall and 7-3 in-conference record.

The game opened with a ceremony to celebrate the team’s outgoing players. Six seniors and three graduate students walked across the field as their names were called, surrounded by family members and cheering teammates. 

Senior defender Olivia Puppo said her time with the team has helped her grow on and off the field.

“Everybody chips in to make you a better person,” Puppo said. “We’ve had so much fun team bonding. We get ice cream and just do everything together, which makes it so much more fun and enjoyable.”

The seniors took the spotlight from the start, with senior midfielder Elizabeth Green scoring two minutes into the game. The Bombers did not let up. When the Thoroughbreds managed to clear the ball, senior defender Kaitlyn Russell rushed in to force a turnover and regain control.

Most of the first half took place in the Thoroughbreds’ defensive zone as the Bombers tested the limits of the play clock. The offense moved in waves, passing around the edges until a path to the goal opened and someone could make a shot. If an attacker could not break through the Thoroughbreds’ defense, the ball was passed back to the perimeter and the cycle started again.

A second turnover caused by Russell let junior midfielder Lily Cody rush the goal, giving the Bombers a 2-0 lead. The Thoroughbreds responded with two goals of their own, but the game did not stay tied for long. The Bombers went to work and managed to end the quarter up 5–2.

The Thoroughbreds struck fast in the second quarter, scoring two goals in 60 seconds. The Bombers seemed to wake up when Cody gained possession from a draw control, she sprinted toward the net. She could not maintain her momentum as she fell to the ground, so she made a last-second pass to sophomore attacker Kelly Augeri, who deftly caught the ball and scored another point for the South Hill squad.

The Bombers had complete control of the game’s tempo as they closed out the half, scoring three more goals and going into halftime up 10-5.

Cody stepped up again in the third quarter when she flung the ball from a seemingly impossible angle to the right of the goal. The ball threaded the needle between the goalie’s head and her stick, bouncing off the left goalpost and into the net.

Neither team could keep possession as the quarter continued. Augeri captured a goal with 20 seconds left in the quarter, and the Bombers seemed content to wait out the clock. The Thoroughbreds saw the relaxed defense as an opportunity. They scored as the buzzer sounded, but it was not enough to gain the upper hand. The South Hill squad entered the fourth quarter with a 15-8 lead.

The Bombers pushed through the end of the game, never losing energy. Instead, the pace picked up and first-year goalkeeper Mikaela Dattilo directed the offense with long, sweeping passes out of the defensive zone that led the Bomber midfielders straight to the net.

The Bombers’ defense herded the Thoroughbreds away from the goal, forcing the offense to make hasty passes that flew out of bounds. Although Skidmore made an impressive short-handed goal halfway through the quarter, tides quickly turned as Cody scored 25 seconds later. The teams seemed evenly matched as they kept trading goals, but the Bombers’ earlier dominance gave them the edge, ending with a 19-11 Bombers’ victory.

The Bombers ended the season ranked No. 2 in the Liberty League standings. They will advance to the Liberty League Championship Tournament for the fifth year in a row.

“Another title, another t-shirt, and another plaque up in our office — that’d be awesome,” Puppo said. “We’re gonna come out fast, and we’re gonna come out hard.”

The Bombers kick off the Liberty League Championship Tournament against the Vassar College Brewers on April 29 at Higgins Stadium.